The Influence of Alignment Degree on the Shrinkage Behavior of Sintered Nd-Fe-B Magnets

In this study, Nd-Fe-B magnets with different degrees of alignment were prepared by adjusting the strength of the alignment magnetic field. The mechanism of influence of alignment degree on the densification of magnets was systematically investigated. The shrinkage rates of the magnets after sintering were calculated, and the results showed that the unoriented magnets exhibited similar shrinkage in different directions, displaying isotropic shrinkage behavior. With the increase in the degree of alignment, the magnets showed significant differences in shrinkage across different directions, presenting anisotropic shrinkage characteristics. In addition, the microstructural analysis revealed that the alignment degree also exerted a certain influence on the micromorphology of the magnets. The grain size parallel to the c-axis was larger than that parallel to the a-axis, which indicates that the alignment degree plays a crucial role in the anisotropic densification of the Nd-Fe-B magnets.